Neil Cossar

Contributor, TMR

Covering This Day In Music

A former musician, Neil was in the 80's group The Cheaters who were once signed to EMI's Parlophone label, and released three albums. He was also a radio presenter and is still a regular music pundit on various BBC stations. Neil is the founder of the award winning web site This Day in Music which is also available as a book and an iPhone / iPad app. Last year Neil launched the first in a series of 'Superbands' apps, starting with This Day in Led Zeppelin. Neil also runs a music PR company with his partner Liz.
Their clients have included; Queen, The Beatles, Natalie Imbruglia, Def Leppard, Jean Michel Jarre, The Hollies, The Specials, INXS, Joan Baez, Eva Cassidy, The Stranglers and UB40, amongst others.
He first started to collect music facts and trivia while working on the radio and this turned into an obsession evolving into the acclaimed web site www.ThisDayInMusic.com.
This Day in Music has been published in book form, in digital format for Kindle, and is also available as a best single iPhone / iPad app.

On this day February 29th in 1968, The Beatles Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band won Album of the Year, Best Cover and Best Engineered and Recorded Album at that year's Grammy Awards. The greatest album ever? The best...

When released it was hailed by critics as a triumph, and the fans agreed. Oh Mercy gave Dylan his best chart showing in years, reaching No. 30 on the Billboard charts in the United States and No. 6 in the UK.

On this day in 1970, Simon and Garfunkel went to No.1 on the UK chart with Bridge Over Troubled Water. The album went on to stay on the chart for over 300 weeks, returning to the top of the charts on eight separate occasions and spending a total of 41 weeks at No.1

As a musician and spokesperson for his generation, Bob Marley had the political drive of John Lennon, the poetic side of Bob Dylan, and a groove coupled with hypnotic melodies that was unmistakably his own.

The irony of the whole episode known as Nipplegate is that, as we know, the media uses sex to sell everything—cars, sports, hotels, food, films, everything—but when an unexpected incident like this happens, everybody is up in arms.

For a group who only released one proper album, the Sex Pistols made one hell of an impact. Their timing was perfect. The media had a field day and couldn't keep those dirty little punks off the front pages of the papers.

There’s something very nice and warm about Neil Diamond — he’s like an old friend, a comfy pair of slippers, he’s your favourite uncle. You see, I’m saying all this and I’ve never even met the guy. But reading about him confirms my thoughts.

On this day, 23 January 1956, rock and roll fans in Cleveland under the age of 18 were banned from dancing in public (unless accompanied by an adult), after Ohio Police introduced a law dating back to 1931.

Dolly Parton isn’t just an old fashioned American entertainer / songwriter / singer who has had her own TV show, and has appeared in over a dozen films - she’s a small industry! Pay a visit to Dollyparton.com and you’re drawn into the singer’s world.

On this day in 1974, former members from Free, (Paul Rodgers & Simon Kirke), Mott The Hoople, (Mick Ralphs), and King Crimson, (Boz Burrell), formed Bad Company. The band went on to score a US No.1 album with their debut release.

On this day, 17 January 1969, Led Zeppelin I, the band's debut album, was released in the US, coinciding with the band's first headlining US concert tour. It was to peak at No.10 in the US chart, and at No.6 in the UK.

On this day in 1975, Pink Floyd started sessions at Abbey Road Studios in London for their next album, Wish You Were Here. How do you follow one of the best regarded and biggest selling albums of all time? With another one.

On this day in 2004, Kinks singer Ray Davies was shot in the leg while on holiday in New Orleans. The 59-year-old singer/songwriter was shot when running after two men who stole his girlfriend's purse at gunpoint.

"Christmas Wrapping," by The Waitresses, was first released in 1981 on the compilation album A Christmas Record on ZE Records, written soon after the birth of rap music in that style, hence the word "wrapping" in the title.

This Irish folk style ballad, written by Jem Finer and Shane MacGowan, is frequently cited as the best Christmas song of all time in various television, radio and magazine related polls in Ireland and the UK.

Campbell has released more than 70 albums. He has sold 45 million records. He was in great demand as a session musician in the 1960s and worked as part of the studio musicians' clique known as "the Wrecking Crew."

On this day in 1962, The Osmonds appeared for the first time on NBC's The Andy Williams Show. The brothers performed a version of "I'm A Ding Dong Daddy From Dumas." The Osmonds — love 'em or loathe 'em, you can't deny they have a place in pop music history as well as peoples' hearts.

Don’t you just love it when a song like this travels the world and affects peoples lives, makes people think about change, makes people realize they can do better, or try and improve their life for good?

On this day in 1968, Marvin Gaye scored his first US #1 single when "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" started a five-week run at the top. It was Marvin's 15th solo hit and also his first UK #1 single in March, '69.